Police log for 10/30

October 30, 2002

Man's body found in Frederick identified

FREDERICK, Md. - The identity of a decomposed body found Sept. 21 in a cornfield near the Maryland School for the Deaf last month has been matched to a 30-year-old man with no fixed address, Frederick City Police said Tuesday.

Foul play is not suspected, police said.

Lewis Demetrius Washington was identified through fingerprint comparison, police said. The investigation into the cause, time and manner of his death is continuing.

A person walking in the field adjacent to South Market Street found the body at around 3 p.m. on Sept. 21. That field was harvested five days earlier, police said.

The body was taken to the office of the Chief Medical Examiner of Maryland in Baltimore.

Man charged in college dormitory fire

EMMITSBURG, Md. - A 19-year-old man has been charged with one count of first-degree arson in connection with a fire at Mt. Saint Mary's College and Seminary on Oct. 14 at 12:43 a.m.

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Ryan Curran, address unknown, was taken before a Frederick County bond commissioner Tuesday. He was not being held at the Frederick County Detention Center, jail officials said Tuesday night.

Maryland State Fire Marshals were called to the campus and found firefighters from Vigilant Hose Fire Co. had the fire nearly out in the occupied dormitory building. Damage from the deliberately-set fire was estimated at $500.

If convicted, Curran could face up to 30 years in prison and/or a fine of $50,000.

Arson charges filed against area man

KNOXVILLE, Md. - An Aug. 7 fire that destroyed a two-story home in the 200 block of Knoxville Road led to an arson indictment against Earl Cliffton Gravley, investigators with the Maryland State Fire Marshal's office said Tuesday.

Gravley, 20, of the 3900 block of South Mountain Road, was taken into custody Tuesday. He was charged with one count of first-degree arson in the indictment returned by a Frederick County grand jury.

He was being held at the Frederick County Detention Center Tuesday night on $100,000 bond, jail officials said.

Fire marshals said the early- morning blaze caused $75,000 damage to the home, which had been vacated by the victim.

If convicted, Gravley could face up to 30 years in prison and/or a fine of $50,000.

Vehicle broken into at local car dealership

A 1999 Pontiac Grand Am was broken into at Sharrett Inc. off Dual Highway, according to a report to the Washington County Sheriff's Department on Monday.

A CD/cassette player valued at more than $400 was stolen, police said. Also, the front and rear passenger windows were broken, causing an estimated $400 worth of damage.

Man in fatal crash still in critical condition

A man involved in a head-on collision on Mt. Aetna Road in which two people died last Thursday remained in critical condition Tuesday night.

Matthew David Meyer, 22, of the 11000 block of Robinwood Drive, is at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore.

Gerald Eugene Dietrich, 59, and Mary Ellen Dietrich, 61, of the 2000 block of Academy Lane in Hagerstown, were killed in the crash.